While everyone was distracted by either avoiding the flames or dealing with the fire. Mia and Ray took this chance to disappear from the crowd. Nes was by her side, and she activated a spell concealing the two in a type of shadow. But to the outside, they seemed invisible.

  It reminded Ray of the black sash shadow skill they had learnt only it seemed to work a little better considering they were in broad daylight.

  "Have you sorted out your decoy?" Mia asked.

  Ray nodded in response.

  Alright, now it's time to get your friend.

  "Van, this is Mia, the tower master." Suddenly, Van could hear a voice in his head.

  "This whole thing was a plan set up by your mother, the queen has asked for your presence, escape from the crowd and meet us just behind the first-year building."

  Mia felt bad about telling a lie, but it was the only way they could get Van to move without telling him all the details of the plan. Even if they did let Van in on the idea, there was always the chance he would say no. If a student was spotted trying to see the divine being, they could be expelled.

  Van immediately got up from his seat. Bliss who was sat just in front of him could see Van looked visibly worried and the next second he had stormed off.

  'Somethings wrong' Bliss thought. The look on his face said there was danger and by now she knew what Van was like. If something was wrong, he wouldn't tell the others and try to deal with it himself. However, Bliss was equally the same.

  "Hey, where you going?" Norah asked.

  "I'm sorry it's my time of the month. I really need to go!" She shouted as she went off to follow Van.

  Waiting around the back of the school was Mia and Ray. In front of her were two human-sized wooden dolls. She touched the first doll, and it started to stand up on its own. After pulling a strand of her hair and placing it on the doll, a spell was cast, and slowly the image of the doll started to warp and change.

  And finally, it looked like an exact replica of herself. "Impressive right, it can't fight or anything but anything the doll can see, I can see and hear as well. It's a bit complicated to control the doll and my own body at the same time, but I got used to it over the years."

  Just then, Van came running out from around the corner and saw Nes and Mia.

  "My mother, is she okay!" Van asked in a panicked voice.

  Mia walked over to Van and looked him in the eye.

  "I'm sorry." She said as she plucked a piece of hair from the top of his head.

  "What was that for?" Van asked, rubbing his head. But suddenly, a speck of purple dust started to enter through his nostrils. As it did, he could feel his eyelids getting heavy and his mind getting hazy. Then his legs finally gave in, and he fell onto the floor.

  "Whoops I didn't expect it to work that fast," Mia said as she looked at Van whose face was now planted into the grass, on the floor.

  "Do you mind?" Mia said.

  Without saying a word, Ray walked over to where Van was and lifted him onto his shoulder, it seemed like Van was as light as a feather.

  "Wow, your pretty strong aren't you?"

  Ray nodded back as a response.

  "I guess not the talkative type."

  The hair was then placed on the second doll, and now it had also taken the shape of Van.

  "It's going to be hard controlling two at once, but I should be able to deal with it."

  The two dolls then ran off back to the direction of where the fight was taking place.

  While the two continued to journey their way to one of the Towers. What they didn't realise was that Bliss had seen the whole thing.

  "What are they doing with Van?" She thought. "No It can't be, is the tower master and Nes actually working for the Shadow."

  She seemed to have remembered that the old man Wiz had said multiple times that he was after Van and yet, here she was seeing him being taken away again.

  Although she couldn't be a hundred percent sure and didn't want to alarm anyone, so she decided to secretly follow the two from a safe distance behind.

  "You know we're being followed by your friend, right?" Mia said.

  Ray nodded once again.

  "Do you want me to do something, get rid of her?"

  Ray shook his head this time, indicating he did not.

  "I guess it's your call."

  Back on the open field, Roy had only just gotten the flames to settle, but in the centre of the field, where Ray and Blake were fighting, it was nearly impossible to see anything.

  Just as the fireball had hit the ground, Ray had landed as well. To make it harder for the others to see, he activated his ice attribute while using his fire in his other hand to create thick mist over the centre.

  Then finally, when the mist started to settle down, they began to see two figures. The first thing the students saw was the tower master Dez knelt down on one knee as if he had been severely injured.

  ??Was the fire from Nes too strong for him!" The students thought.

  But the next thing was even bigger news for them. All of the mist had now disappeared and holding on to Blake in the air with a single hand, was Ray.

  While most of the students had never seen Blake look so weak before, the students of Del's class had seen this exact seen somewhere else before. In the shadow continent, the Redwing member known as Ray had done this exact thing.

  "You know, you just had to do it, didn't you?" Ray asked.

  "Do what?" Blake cried as he struggled, kicking his legs into the air.

  [Skill activated Dragons truth]

  "Did you have anything to do with the empire starting a war with the group known as the Redwings?"

  In a monotone voice as if Blake was under a spell he replied.

  "I sent a letter to my father, who is head of the magic division in the empire. I told them everything that the Red-headed man said that day about not being afraid of the empire. My father sent me a message back, saying they will be dealt with."

  The colour returned to Blake's eyes.

  "Let go of me, if you don't, do you know what will happen?"

  [Mana steal activated]

  [Mana drain activated]

  "I didn't have any poison powers before, so I thank you for giving me two wonderful gifts."

  "Nes put the student down right now!" Betty shouted.

  As Ray looked around, the three-tower masters had him surrounded.

  ***

  Thank you everyone for the gifts, if I add the names the chapter length will cost more. Thank you all.